Odyssey of beauty: J.M.W. Turner at the Peabody Essex

Sunday

Jun 1, 2014 at 7:00 AMJun 1, 2014 at 1:30 PM

By Chris BergeronDaily News Staff

SALEM - Beneath brooding skies, a steamship churns through seething waves toward the sun, a glimmering ember sinking beneath the far horizon.Painted by Joseph Mallord William Turner at the height of his prodigious powers, "Staffa, Fingal's Cave'' showcases the signature subjects and style of England's greatest maritime artist – an incredible range of tonal variety, a fusion of nautical detail and allegorical imagery that stirs viewers' emotions.It is just one of several masterpieces displayed in "Turner & the Sea,'' an illuminating exhibition of stunning beauty at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem.Visitors will see more than 100 oils, watercolors, prints and sketches spanning 50 years of the career of "the painter of light'' whose work reflected the glory of 19th century Britain as a global sea power while linking romanticism and the later impressionism and modernism."Turner's paintings cause us to feel, to respond not just intellectually but emotionally,'' said Daniel Finamore, PEM curator of maritime art and history. "…He was the most talked about artist of his day. He was controversial, disturbing, enigmatic, but never ignored.''Explaining his distinctive style, he said, "Turner looked to classicism but turned it to his own style'' and incorporated elements of impressionism, minimalism and modernism in his work before they became formal movements.Organized by the National Maritime Museum, which is part of the Royal Museums, Greenwich, London, this exhibit establishes the historical and aesthetic conditions that shaped Turner's art while chronicling his humble origins, extraordinary progress and controversial life that made him a singular genius. The PEM is the exhibit's only stop in the U.S.Finamore has taken the exhibit in a new direction by adding a final section – "Atlantic Crossings" - that shows how Turner influenced American painters like Thomas Moran, James Hamilton, Edwin Frederic Church and James McNeill Whistler.Introducing the exhibit Thursday morning, chief curator Lynda Hartigan described Turner as "Britain's most celebrated painter, a creative force who cut a huge swath through the 19th century.''"Turner was one of the most inventive artists of all time. He quickly forged his own direction,'' she said. "Turner celebrated and elevated the art of watercolors and showed how complementary that medium could be with oils.''Like the vessels Turner painted, this exhibit carries visitors on the intriguing odyssey of an artist whose work reflected not just the impact of British naval power and Turner's fascination with the sea, but how he changed the course of painting.While his exact date of birth remains unknown, Turner was baptized in May 1775, and raised as an only child by working class parents. He displayed extraordinary drawing skill before his teens and was admitted to the Royal Academy of Art when he was 14 years old.Visitors can follow Turner's progress through the arc of his career as he became England's premier painter to final, private works that show he was experimenting until his death at 76 in 1851.Following the show's original design, the exhibit is divided into seven thematic sections, including the final one Finamore added: "Turner on Show"; "Charted Waters"; " ‘M' for Marine"; "Contested Waters"; "Imagining the Sea"; "Making Waves"; and "Atlantic Crossings."Finamore described Turner as "a constant innovator and doggedly hard worker." "Artists like this aren't made,'' he said. "They're born.''Entering the show, visitors will see "Fishermen at Sea,'' Turner's first exhibited painting which he displayed at the Royal Academy in 1796 when he was 21. While working in the tradition of Continental maritime painting, Turner has incorporated the brilliant moonlight and sharply detailed central figures surrounded by darker, roiling waters often found in later scenes.Despite his relative youth, Turner courted public sentiment, Finamore said, by portraying the beleaguered fisherman "as British Everymen," whose strength and endurance "holds the nation together'' at a time England was on a collision course with France and Spain.While "Turner & the Sea'' offers many high points, the monumental oil painting, "The Battle of Trafalgar,'' provides a dramatic, visually stunning scene of the Royal Navy's decisive victory over the French and Spanish navies in 1805 that changed the direction of the Napoleonic Wars.The mix of nautical detail from the actual battle and symbolism is astounding. Finamore said the damaged mast implies the death below decks of Admiral Horatio Nelson and the signal flags convey the last word of his famous injunction, "England expects every man will do his duty.''Depicting Nelson's flagship, HMS Victory, sinking the French Redoubtable, Turner has included hundreds of sailors climbing the rigging and manning the lifeboats in remarkable detail.Visitors don't have to be seasoned salts to be dazzled by the variety, accuracy and atmosphere of Turner's numerous nautical scenes. Landlubbers will thrill to dozens of sea battles, storm-tossed ships, coastal panoramas, harbor scenes and more.At the exhibit's end, Turner's celebrated "Snow Storm – Steam Boat off a Harbor's Mouth'' from 1842 depicts a steam vessel – suggesting the modern age – getting battered by raging seas, using techniques presaging impression and modernism.Describing the painting completed in his late 60s, Turner stated, "I did not paint it to be understood but I wished to show what such a scene was like.''Throughout this magnificent, must-see exhibit, Turner has done exactly that with numerous paintings of astounding power and beauty.Chris Bergeron is a Daily News staff writer. Contact him at cbergeron@wickedlocal.com or 508-626-4448. Follow us on Twitter @WickedLocalArts and on Facebook."Turner & the Sea''WHEN: Through Sept. 1WHERE: Peabody Essex Museum, East India Square, SalemINFO: 866-745-1876; www.pem.org